How to Calculate Routes

Pick your destination and get ready for an adventure

Planning a trip can be overwhelming at times, but with modern technology some of the hassle can be avoided. The days of poring for hours over the twisting and turning lines on a map are over. By selecting your beginning and ending points as well as some other key pieces of information, you can calculate your route in minutes. No matter if you are basing your trip around specific landmarks or trying to calculate the shortest route, everything you need can be found online.

Things You'll Need

• Start and end points
• Computer with Internet access
• Lodging information

Instructions

Calculating Travel Routes

1. 

   Sometimes the adventure can start while you plan your trip

   Select your start and end points. To accurately research a travel route you need to have established definite start and end points. This information will help decide any travel accommodations or side trips you would like to explore.

2. 

   Put your computer to work by accessing online maps for your trip

   Locate online maps or trip planners. Online resources can take the stress out of having to follow the lines on a map. Some of the resources can plot and calculate routes based on shortest distance, avoiding highways and choosing routes that are closest to landmarks of interest.

3. 

   Road construction and other problems can cause travel delays if you have not planned ahead.

   Plot several routes to reach your destination. It is a good idea to have several options for your trip to plan ahead in case of unforeseen problems. You can be prepared in case of traffic delays, road construction or natural disasters that cause delays or detours.

4. 

   Having travel accomodations that correspond to your travel route is imperative.

   Choose travel accommodations and plot your route accordingly. A key element in choosing your travel route is finding travel accommodations that are accessible along the way. Another thing to keep in mind is if you choose lodging that is not immediately accessible to the main thoroughfare you are traveling on, you will want to map that location into your route calculation as well.

5. 

   Get packed and head out on your next adventure

   Make final adjustments to your travel route. Return to your online maps and calculators to input all of the final travel data and get your final calculations for your trip. Print out all of your final routes and trip data so you are prepared for your trip.

Tips & Warnings

• Choosing different times of the day for your travel can increase or decrease your calculated route travel time.

• Make sure you make a duplicate copy of your travel route in case your original copy is lost or damaged.

References

• Trip Calculator: Fuel Consumption Calculator and Travel time Calculator
• Rand McNally Trip Calculator
• Get the Best Highway Trip Planner

Resources

• Mileage-Charts - Calculate Individual Mileages and Travel Times